The Atlanta constitution. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1885-19??, 1887-10-25
A WILD rIGEI Ride.

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rate romancer. He is also a fast friend of Jim
Turner of Lansing The two were managers
of the Michigan school for the blind for num-
her of years, till Governor Luce, for some
political or personal reasons, refused to reap
point Jim. Tom thinks a great deal Of jim,
and is never tired of telling big stories about
his smartness, and liberality, and wealth, and
farm, and wife and babies. Jim reciprocates.
Jim made his first start at the tender age of
eighteen by taking q contract for building
twenty miles of the jackson, Lansing and Sagi-
nav railroad, He was successful at that, and
has thrived like a green bay tree since.
Apologize tells story characteristic of jim
Turner.
You see, Jim had S15o0oO pine land deal
with Stephens, of st. Helen, in Roscommon
county, and had thirty day option in which
to put up the rocks. From the way the nego-
tiations were made Jim thought there would
be no trouble in getting an extension of the
option, if he did not plank down the money at
the time. OF course Jim is a millionaire, but
it bothers the richest man, sometimes, to show
$4,000 in cool cash. Well, two or three days
before the expiration of the option jim found
purchaser, and lie communicated with Steph-
ems about the option. Now Stephens had been
negotiating with another party and had got
better offer. Jim heard of this and he got
anxious. So he telegTaphed
"'Why haven't you answered my letter?
Can get an extension"' The answer was
NO
'Then Jim walked up. He came to Detroit
and went round to the banks for money.
Finally about the time the banks closed, he
got three cashiers together, and he says to
them:
'''Loob here, want $4,000, and I want it
right now
1.-THE three cashiers said: All right, Jim,'
and they each told their tellers to count out
$4,000 in currency. Jim says to them:
"'Now certify that each bundle has been
counted and found correct
"They affixed their certificates to each
bundle of notes, and Jim turned his clean
shirts and collars out of his gripsack and
stuffed the $4,000 in their place. Then he
puts down to the Michigan Central in hurry
and interviews the president.
" Ledyard, he said, 4 want to go to st.
Helen tonight
" You can't do it, says Ledyard there are
no more trains tonight
" 4 know that, says Jim, but must get
there
@ You can't do it,
g 4 tell you that L am going there before
midnight. want a special engine and car
and your best engineer, and / want you to keep
the road clear. can't afford to lose half a
million without struggle
"'Well, jim, you can have all that, but
tell you you can't get to st. Helen tonight.
It's l75 miles from here, and the road is pretty
rough
"'Tu chance it, says jim.
/ "They brought out an engine and one car in
/ jiity, and Jim put his wife ON the car. Then
he went to the engineer and said:
! " Now, here's SO, and for every hour you
save before midnight you get $25 more.
" Il do the best can, said the engineer.
| The road above Bay City is rough, but III
| Whoop it up for all it is WORTH
Il tell You that engine tore away like mad,
and they got to Bay City in a hurry Then
they had to take the Mackinaw division of the
| Michigan Central. The roadbed was pretty
| bad, and sure enough there was an accident
ahead They had to stop at way station on
account OF wreck up the line. Jim felt con-
| siderably set back, but he didn't show it. He
! just put his feet on the gripsac1 and clinched
his teeth and waited. BY good luck the wreck
! was cleared off in about an hour, and away
| they moved again 1t was dark by this time,
and the coach Wobbled like a hobby horse.
! Jim asked the engineer if he could go any
! faster.
T." I hardly dare to run faster" said the man,
! but if you take the risk | will
| " Crack her through, said Jimmy, sI'll nav
| for your funeral.
''Tho engine flashed along and the car rocked
worse than ever.
cts getting rough, said Mrs. Turner. Is
| there any danger, Jimmy?
Eyes, my dear, but if we get off the track
| wen get in the ditch together
| "'All right Jimmy
"Id just as soon be ditched as get left, after
! THO h'eg tilpSO lSAtONS uttNO tICllcu me- re-
| sponded Jim.
"Well, to make a long story short. the train
! got to St. Helen about II 80 that night EVERY
thing was dark at the depot; not light in the
! little hamlet.
"Jim and his wife ftoundered through the
! mud, up to Stephens door. Rap, rap. No
answer. More knocking. Then came a voice
WHO'S there? What do you want?'
| It's me. I'm Jim Tuner. I've come up
| here to complete that sale. Open the door
| 50 L don't want to see you at all. 1 won't
| make the trade
/" i warn you that have come here to make
! a legal tender in the time of the contract. You
viii have to take the consequences in the courts
| of refusing.
Then the man weakened and opened the
| door. Jim went into the front room with his
! Wife, opened the grpsack, and put the bun
! dies of bank notes on the table. 1t was now
! ten minutes Of midnight
q" i can't count that money in an hour said
! the man.
You needn't said Jim; 1T is counted al
! ready, and there's the certificates
"The man wouldn't take the money at first,
but he saw that Jim had the winning cards.
! and he gave in and signed the papers. A few
! minutes afterward the Turner'S were back in
! the car and speeding to Bay City, where they
| took breakfast. The property has been sold
since, and Jim made half million out of it ;